On July 1, 1847, the United States began requiring that postage stamps be affixed to all letters sent.

Little did anyone know then that collecting those specific stamps, a 5-cent Ben Franklin and a 10-cent George Washington, along with untold editions that followed, would become a hobby. Or, in the case of Erie resident Bob Stazer, a business.

Stazer, who sold Lakewood Stamp Co. two years ago because of his failing eyesight, talked about stamp collecting in a digital age in Monday's Erie Times-News and on GoErie.com.